The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to diagnostic imaging systems, and more particularly to methods and systems for aligning patients within the diagnostic imaging systems, especially nuclear medicine (NM) imaging systems.
Diagnostic nuclear imaging is used to study radionuclide distribution in a subject, such as a patient. Typically, one or more radiopharmaceuticals or radioisotopes are injected into the patient. Gamma imaging detector heads, typically including a collimator, are placed adjacent to a surface of the subject to monitor and record emitted radiation. The gamma imaging detector heads then may be rotated around the patient to monitor the emitted radiation from a plurality of directions, such as for cardiac imaging. The monitored radiation data from the plurality of directions is reconstructed into a three-dimensional (3D) image representation of the radiopharmaceutical distribution within the patient or a region of interest (ROI).
Generally, the resolution of a gamma imaging detector head degrades with increasing distance between the imaged object or ROI (e.g., organ) and the detector. Therefore, it is desirable to place the gamma imaging detector head as close as possible to the patient to facilitate minimizing the loss of resolution. Typically, a manual user setup procedure is performed wherein the patient table is moved in proximity to the image detectors to set a scan position for the table and determine a contour of rotation for the detectors based on a user visual inspection. This process requires significant user input and interaction, which is time consuming. Moreover, the accuracy of the setup may be affected by the level of operator experience and the amount of time the operator takes to perform the setup. Accordingly, less than optimal settings may result. Additionally, improper settings can result in image degradation or contact with the patient during imaging, which causes interruption of the image acquisition, thereby adding time to the scan.